Comcast Changed Arguments on OVDs, Dish Says
Comcast retreated from earlier defenses of its proposed buy of Time Warner Cable, Dish Network said in a partially redacted ex parte filing posted Tuesday in FCC docket 14-57. Comcast previously portrayed online video distributors as a benefit to its…
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content and ISP businesses, but now “applicants acknowledge OVDs are a threat,” Dish said. Comcast also shifted its stance on whether the deal will lead to a rate increase and whether it ever considered an out-of-footprint over-the-top offering, Dish said. Comcast also “sidestepped” Dish arguments about the cable company’s “evasion” of previous deal conditions, said the DBS company. “The point is not that Comcast will overtly violate the law, but that Comcast can and will exploit any lack of clarity, complexity in the facts, and the likely frequent inability of either the Commission or possible victims to detect the relevant conduct,” Dish said. "This is just another example of Dish repackaging its old arguments and misrepresenting the facts," a Comcast spokeswoman told us. "We’ve already responded to their claims, and will do so again in due time.”